Garlic Festival can't compete says organizer downtown event scrapped

In the battle of the food festivals, despite its strong odour, garlic has conceded defeat to the mighty poutine.

Organizers of the Garlic Festival in Sudbury say after 25 years the event is folding.

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The annual event, held at the end of August, wasorganized by the non-profitUkranian Seniors Centrein Sudbury.

They were prepared to go again this summer, says centrePresident SandraSharko. But they noticed a news article about a new food festival planned for the same weekend.

Admiral Entertainment, a company based in Barrie, Ont.is bringing itsPoutineFest to Sudbury from August 25 - 27 for the first time. The event is free and includesfood andcraft vendors, along withfree live entertainment.

Sharkosays shecontacted the company to see if conflicting issues could be worked out.

Both events offered food, children's activities and live entertainment, and would be located just a few blocks away from each other.

She says although Admiral offered to give a donation to the seniors centre, and let them have a vendors table at Poutine Fest, neither option appealed to the garlic festival committee.

Sharko says the garlic festival just couldn't compete with another larger food event on the same weekend.

Thecommittee then decided there willnot be a festival this year, or ever again.

"When it folded this year we knew that would be it. There's no way we could round up the sponsors again and it would just be impossible," says Sharko.

The garlic festival in Sudbury had been one of the biggest fundraisersfor the Ukranian Seniors Centre. It also holds therecord as the first garlic festival in Canada.

Sharko says the seniors at the centrewill continue to sell homemade food from their locationon the corner of Notre Dame Avenue and Louis Street.

They even plan to put a tent outside thebuilding on the Sunday of what would have been the Garlic Festival.

"We will have our own Ukranianpoutine," says Sharko, explaining that small perogiescan be used instead of fries, with gravy, onions and garlic added on top.

She is disappointed the festival has ended, but she remains optimistic.

"We're looking at it on a positive note. We had 25 great years."